If Joni Mitchell had three brothers who could produce nothing but dry, white toast.
Triangle is the fourth studio album by American rock band The Beau Brummels. Produced by Lenny Waronker and released in July 1967, it was the band's first album to include songs that vocalist Sal Valentino and guitarist Ron Elliott composed together. The band incorporated fantasy elements and surreal characters into the album's song titles and lyrics, and worked with a variety of session musicians to create Triangle's psychedelic musical style. The Beau Brummels were reduced to a trio—Valentino, Elliott, and Ron Meagher—at the time Triangle was recorded, as former group members Don Irving (guitars) and John Petersen (drums) left the band following the release of the group's previous album, Beau Brummels '66. Triangle reached number 197 on the Billboard 200 albums chart and received mostly positive reviews; critics commended Elliott as a songwriter and compared Valentino's vocals to those of Bob Dylan. The single "Magic Hollow" was ranked one of "The 100 Greatest Psychedelic Classics" in a 1997 issue of Mojo magazine. Warner Japan released this album as WPCP-5252 in 1993. Collectors' Choice Music reissued the album in 2002.
If Joni Mitchell had three brothers who could produce nothing but dry, white toast.
standard 60's white-guy rock not terrible, but not good either 2/5 unless it improves in songs 7-11 It didn't.
Thr singer sounds like Bob Dylan. This is not a compliment. The album was 28 minutes too long.
**Triangle, listening state: Sedated but cognitive functions unimpaired.** Are You Happy? - Immediately taken aback by how Bob Dylan-esque this all sounds. The instrumentation is a treat. I hear some sounds that epitomise the "Beach Boys" to some extent, so it's a good example of what the genre would become. It's pretty beautiful. Only Dreaming Now - Western much? Mystic Western music!!!!! Oh my god.... This is so amazing. I feel like I'm playing DnD with Arthur Morgan. Fuck off. This song is amazing. The violin work is gorgeous. It's so... Weird. They mix gypsy music and even accordion with what makes up psychedelic rock... But it's not rock.... But it is? It's amazing. This one is a musical orgasm for sure. The Painter of Women - Once more, Spaghetti Western subverted. Space spaghetti western? Moon Knight walks by a saloon in the city of Valentine in RDR2. Song to murder gunslingers to as a fantasy vigilante. So good I might add it to my playlist. "He is known through the land as the blind gentleman"????? Daredevil, then. The lyrics are bizarre. Deeply weird. It reminds me of Working Class Hero by Lennon in its folk hero lyrics. The Keeper of Time - Back to Alabama and bluegrass, pretty alright. But nothing too inventive. I take that back, this is another musical orgasm. Very Dylan-esque, almost Gainsbourg-like in its composition. I can even sense how it influenced bands like Dio or Blue Oyster Cult decades later. This was petty ballsy for sixty seven. It Won't Get better - This one is straight up Dylan. I don't know what to say about it. I fuck with the rhythm and the trumpets, they give tempo to the vocals-- The rhythm is simplistic until we break it down, they use percussion brushes and whips to give this tshk sound to drums. It takes some inspiration from the forties and fifties and brings it into psychedelic. Nine Pound Hammer - Maxwell's Silver Hammer? I can see the parallels. But it's more akin to some... What?! That guitar riff was so Eric Clapton, I can even hear some Physical Graffiti in there with the scale. The vocals are extremely great and mastered with harmonies in the background, easy to dismiss them at first, but they add to the song. The drumming keeps on with the brushes and whips. And the guitars weep, using bottlenecks and slides to get the perfect squuiiiiiiiier. Banger of a song. Would play this to muffle the sounds of a murder. Magic Hollow - This is gypsy magic!!!!! This is fantasy before fantasy existed!!! This is Dio before Dio existed!!!!!!!!!!! What is this sorcery? I can hear how Black Sabbath took inspiration. It's gorgeous. No, it's magic. The violin.... I'm in love? This is a song I would genuinely want to see in a movie where two characters get high and have sex. This is the sensuality of crazy. And I've Seen Her - Little country bluegrass ditty that feels somewhat out of place at first but I'm not falling for that again. It's going to switch up and leave me gobsmacked. Harmonica work is good? I don't know what else to compliment, the rest of the album's great production makes it into this song but this just feels slightly out of place after Magic Hollow. Ouch, the ending. Triangle - The eponymous and main track of the album... It starts off big with blaring horn and honestly kicks off like a campaign of dungeons and dragons. You feel like an adventurer leaving the Shire, like Bilbo Baggins. You feel it. Great depictions of greenery. "TRIIIIIIIII-AAAAAY-AYYYYY-ANGLE!" This is a precursor to what even Tame Impala does nowadays. Amazing song. Musical orgasm achieved. The Wolf of Velvet Fortune - Great arpeggio guitar start, makes you feel mysterious and like you're in a dangerous camp of bandits as an assassin. Unfamiliar breeze? Very Witcher-esque. A cross between Altaïr and Geralt. The flower crying for the sunlight is akin to humans living in darkness and this song is the light it brings to the blind. The mysticism of the lyrics definitely make this album something entirely different and the beautiful melodies and harmonies of this song make it my favourite of the entire album. Will definitely add it to my playlist and use it for my writing. It's a "delight" as the song puts it. It has Turkish undertones but goes back to being very spoken-word at times, with only the Spanish-ish arpeggio. It's a perfect song.I shed a little tear, to be sure. This song does not overstay its welcome, it's as long as it needs to be to finish the tale of our journey through the land of Triangle. We are reaching the end... "Goodnight" indeed. The harmonies kill me.... Wow. Old Kentucky Home - The last track goes back to being happy, which is a bit odd-- Seeing as it was mystic beforehand. But this song starts off with the simple joys of Kentucky. It's a very earnest song. It breaks into a choir, a full blown choir celebrating the sunshine on his old Kentucky home. It's bittersweet. We went from magic and mysticism to... Kentucky. And it feels reassuring. Especially when you hear "I don't care 'cause I'm alright." A great finish but not a showstopper. Final Score -- This is a concept album. This isn't your everyday country album. As far as saying it's aged better than the Beatles, I'm going to have to somewhat agree and somewhat disagree. I can say it has kept influence, even if people do not realise it, up to modern psychedelic and a lot of its elements have influenced a wider range of genres but the Beatles still do influence just as much, it's more focused within pop, a genre that I "dismiss" oftentimes. Overall, it had an amazing production and quality and I think it deserves a solid 4.2/5.
Un album très sympathique. A noter que ce groupe très influencé par les Beatles devait à sa création s'appeler The Beautles.
This was an interesting and easy listening. I liked the fantasy vibes but it I grew a bit weary by the end.
Man, this was obscure even for me! Deservedly so it seems, jangly psychedelia with a sub-Dylan vocal. A few styles attempted on this album, none of them well. "It Won't Get Better", should have believed them. Back to the footnotes, dandies!
Another 60s pop/rock/psych band? Well, let's give them a fair... OH NO, HE SOUNDS LIKE BOB DYLAN. Admittedly, a Bob Dylan with a slightly better voice who can actually sing (be it in a style, that I really can't stand). The instrumentals are also not as boring. I still didn't particularly enjoy the album, but it deserves half a star bonus for being better than what I've heard from Dylan. 2.5/5
This list has a lot more of these records than necessary. I just got one of these psychedelic folk albums two days ago, and here it's the same quiet jangly sound, the same shaky vocals, and the same ’60s Woodstock vibe. There's nothing special about it, and it didn't age well either. The only song that I enjoyed at least a little bit was The Wolf of Velvet Fortune, which had a nice dark, haunting atmosphere. Too bad the rest of the album didn't match up.
Yea I painted mini figs for D&D while listening to this one. No notes.
The soundscapes and lyrics are densely packed into the very brief songs, which are an expert mix of folk rock and psychedelia. This album caught me completely by surprise. Best track: The Wolf of Velvet Fortune
I was genuinely surprised in how much I enjoyed this album. It isn’t what I would normally listen to but it was easy to listen to.
At less than 30 min. this is a reminder of how much shorter albums used to be. Track 2 sounds like King Crimson might sound without Robert Fripp's guitar. I guess this LP was released before King Crimson's first so this could be the influencer rather than influencee. Track 1 and the vocals in general sound like Bobby Dylan. This is a lovely contribution to the short but sweet psychedelic era. I'm glad the psychedelic era didn't overstay its welcome. I guess the record company execs had not yet started to reward music created by formulae. On the last track psychedelic is left behind as the album ends with an excellent foot stompin, bourbon drinkin, good ole boys tune. I have no clue where that came from but I'm glad it dropped in.
This is very silly, as well as typically didactic for the era. These damn hallucinauts, telling me what to do! I’m glad it exists and I’m glad to have listened to it. I shall now thank The Beau Brummels for their incessant stoned advice and their story about a wolf of velvet fortune, acknowledge without condoning their slander of the people of Kentucky, and walk away from the campfire with a two in my pocket.
yeah nah. Not seeing the value in this.
I am listening to this as I write the review...not enjoying this and it's only 29 minutes long... I prefer Billy Joel's nod to Beau Brummel and it's only a one liner. This is just feels like country-psychedelia with a lot of nonsensical trippy and yet dull lyrics. I mean, Magic Hollow is embarassing. I am saying 2 stars but let's say 1.5
Drivel.
In general, I'm just not all that fond of "psychedelic rock." This album is no exception for me, but it did serve an important purpose: it helped me figure out why I've never really liked that subgenre. It didn't make sense to me for the longest time; after all, as an aging wanna-be hippie, I fit the bill. Listening to this album and really not liking it as it played, it finally occurred to me that one of the things I don't like about psychedlic rock is it's designed to be trippy and weird, but it comes across as too self-conscious and self-referential for me. I like discovering on my own the weirdness and the unusual in art, music, and life; I don't like things that self-proclaim their own weirdness. Anyway, even removing this album from all that, I'm still not interested. Moving on.
more folk noncing.
This was right up my alley. A lot of fun beautiful songs that I’ll come back to. Have never heard of this group so need to dig into their stuff more. Rating: 4.8
I actually really enjoyed the whole album (or I guess really more of an EP). It was unique and just an interesting listen.
Great Album - added to faves
I had never heard of the group, u til I listened to this. Then magical realized that I’d heard them on the radio as a young girl at the swimming pool! That my high school babysitters played some of their songs!! Thoroughly enjoyable music!!
Very San Francisco. Elements of folk, psychadelia, bluegrass, flamenco, and classical music come together with fantasy-esque lyrics to create a surreal album that transcends classification. Lead singer Sal Valentinto's vocals echo Dylan in tone and delivery, but are unique in their own way. This album deserves several listens at the least.
Good album
Qué buena sorpresa de disco. Una mezcla balanceada de folk y psicodelia, a veces me recuerda a Rodríguez pero con mejor producción y obviamente a Dylan, pero con menos factor "gato enojado". Me encanta el detalle de los metales en el fondo. Mis favoritas creo que son "It Won't Get Better" y "Nine Pound Hammer"
Amazing from the start to the second last song on the album.
easy listening, sounded a bit like billy joel
Definitely the ur-late 60s San Francisco sound. Relaxing album, very forward lyrically. Fun quick listen
Fantastic concise album. I am a massive fan and could play this any day with no issue.
Sounds like a mix of Dylan and the Beatles. I like it!
A lovely album that's full of great playing, well crafted beautiful baroque style arrangements and featuring a sunny carefree vibe, perfectly encapsulating those halcyon days of the late sixties. There's plenty of highlights to pick from, like to the hypnotic 'Painter of Women' and 'The Keeper of Time', jazzy 'Nine Pound Hammer', the gorgeously atmospheric waltz 'Magic Hollow's, euphotic 'Triangle' and the trippy middle eastern exotica of 'The Wolf of Velvet Fortune'. The only mistep is the (thankfully brief) sing along chorus of the closing 'Old Kentucky Home'. Ps the mono mix featured on the 50th anniversary vinyl version sounds superb, especially on headphones. As the back cover states, a truly exceptional album.
Wow, I LOVED this. Great whimsical/fantasy-inspired lyrics, that old folk psych sound that I love, and a surprisingly compelling vocalist. Gonna have this one spinning for a while.
This album reminds me of my parents.
Hilarious folk pastiche. Beautiful.
Ett ganska bra album med bara bra låtar. En blandning av Bob Dylan, Beatles och kanske Jefferson Airplane. Hade aldrig hört talas om dessa innan men jag blev glad att få mer kunskap om psykadelisk rock. Känslan passar till många tillfällen så denna var lät att lyssna på flera gånger. Sparade majoriteten av låtarna så jag måste tyvärr ge denna en femma.
I had to double check that Bob Dylan wasn't singing when this first started... but once I heard a bit more the I could tell it wasn't quite him. What it is is some pretty great 60s tunes with lots of fun instrumentation. Loved the accordions, horns, tubas, banjos and other band instruments that kept this interesting and hopping. Now that I re-read the title not sure if I heard the triangle or not... nonetheless quite terrific!
Topper
Great 60's pop. What's not to love?
dude this is such a great, short album holy shit, 10/10
Been waiting for this to happen. Had no idea at all who, what, when, or where about this album but enjoyed it. Great album. Songs work together but don't feel repetitive. Whimsical. Doesn't over stay. The Bob Dylan vocal comparisons make sense especially on the opening track but it works. I'll probably continue to study this one.
I barely know what's going on here but I'll be damned if I'm not digging a decent amount of this; The Wolf of Velvet Fortune is a wild name and a cool song. I've never heard of these guys and am not entirely sure if this is Bob Dylan attempt or just a style they are going for which lands in the same spot but this is an interesting mix. Nice instrumentals. The title track is solid. I think I may like it more than it is objectively great.
Surprisingly loved it
I was not expecting much from this album, but boy was I wrong. If you like the gentle semi-psychedlic pop of the late '60s then this could be just right for you. I loved it.
I've heard of the band but never heard any of their music. I believe Sundance re-issued a number of their albums. I loved this album. Beautiful expressive vocals; simple, timeless arrangements. Reminds of the first time I heard Love Forever Changes...no it's not quite as good as that, but damn close. Favorites: Painter of Women The Keeper of Time Nine Pound Hammer Magic Hollow The Wolf of Velvet Fortune 4 🌟
Folk-rock. Está bien. Un 4.
Been sat deciding on this one for a while. It's some quite interesting folky music with a bit of country (bluegrass maybe?). I like Magic Hollow, The Wolf of Velvet Fortune and Triangle. There's so many instruments in this album (drum kit, string quartet, acoustic guitars and effects, accordion, shakers, bass, horn section, chimes, harp maybe). The way they use the instruments is really good and add loads of variety, probably the best thing about the album. The singer has a great voice and loves his vibrato. The music can be quite atmospheric, and doesn't feel too Square Dancey, it's something you can actually sit down and listen to. Sometimes stuff with too much variety will go in directions I don't like, but it's the most exciting and intriguing folk album I've ever heard. But, I'm still not fully sold on folk.
Easy listening album, not very long but a nice almost all songs are great. Favourite songs: - Are you happy ? - The keeper of time - it won’t get better
Enjoyable sixties pop with a folk rock flair; the band's flights of fancy entertain and there is novelty throughout. A cut above the rest from the era.
Quite liked this one, it's a happy and tolkienesque sound with some harps, mandolins, etc
Rock viejito, mitad folk, mitad country. La música es simple y efectiva, con muy buenos arreglos de percusiones y cuerdas en algunos momentos. Creo que la mejor es Painter of Women. 3.5 estrellas que subo a 4 porque sí lo guardé en la biblioteca.
1960s folk-rock and psychedelia are not my favourite flavours, but this is pretty good! It's a dreamy, hazy 30 mins of acoustic songs with touches of rock and country. There are a couple of weaker tracks, but most of the songwriting and musicianship seems strong, and the whole thing is coherent and atmospheric. Since it has managed to make an impression on me, despite not being in a style that I generally enjoy, I think this has to be 4/5.
I literally don't think I've heard of The Beau Brummels ever before, but this was actually a pretty good little record. I like the mix of baroque and psychedelic aesthetics with classic country music, the songs are diverse and full of energy, and it's overall a pretty nice 60s record I'd come back to. 3.5/5
Definitely really trippy, pretty odd sounding at points, interesting vocals, very cohesive 4.25
A l'ouverture de notre cher et tendre générateur, mon enervement fut palpable en ce mardi matin. A moins de 24h de l'écoute de la bouse allemande de NEU!, pourquoi diable retrouvons nous ENCORE des artistes aussi peu connus et influents dans cette liste? Néammoins, cet album de Matts Hummels fut de très grande qualité. Problème: la durée ridicule de cet album. Pourquoi s'infliger des heures de Minutemerde, Slayer ou encore Elvis Costello, quand la bonne musique est cantonnée à quelques 25mn d'eclaircie? The Beau Goebbels démontre une fois de plus sa fainéantise légendaire, lui qui s'était on le rapelle endormi sur le parvis du New Nick a quelques minutes de son concert en 1971.
I dig it. Painter of women was my favorite. And I was swinging a hammer when 9 lb hammer came on, so it gets bonus points.
Fok-rock. Está bien. Un 4.
Short, carefree sounding, fun album.
I was expecting nothing, and I got a lovely folk-like album with good voice work. This is an excellent highlight in a week with many "standard" albums, and I'll give it 4 * just because of the fun time.
I really liked this one. I was unfamiliar with all the tunes, so a nice surprise!
Never heard of them before, quite liked it though, slightly early genesis feel
I fair enjoyed this. Reminds me a bit of Bellowhead
like beatles só que não
Fun folky psychedelic pop, but ultimately feels like a sanitised and glossy version of Incredible String Band. Give me ISB any day. Some of the song are great - painter of women has some great vibes, and the cover of Nine Pound Hammer has something to it.
Cleaned it up toward the end of the album
I enjoyed it, reminded me a lot of the Soft Boys, unoffensive and easy listening.
This album was a mix of the byrds and bob dylan and it was alright. It wasn’t super amazing but it’s good enough to get a very ambivalent 4 because of songs like nine pound hammer and old Kentucky home.
Pónganse su corona de flores y reúnanse alrededor de la fogata, que traigo la guitarra y vamos todos a cantar, oh!!! Este disco está bueno: canciones alegres, muy buen manejo del multitrack y de la estereofonía (dura, muy ad-hoc a la época). Este es probablemente el mejor disco de folk de los que he escuchado hasta ahora de los que propone esta página, y aunque no es mi género favorito, creo que se merece la calificación. ¿Are you happy?
Elements of mid-late Beatles, with a fair amount of Jethro Tull flair thrown in. Lovely string arrangements and meandering song structure. Good listen.
I quite enjoyed this album - fresh, bouncy, couple of good tracks with Wolf of Velvet Fortune being a highlight, and short enough to not overstay it's welcome. I'll definitely come back to this one.
I’ve never heard of the Beau Brummels, but that’s such a pleasant band name to say out loud. I think it might be up there in my top five band names. A quick Google search tells me that Beau Brummell was an 18th century fashionista. I don’t know why, but that’s hilarious to me. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Only Dreaming Now, Magic Hollow I’m finding that music with a touch a psychedelica here and there is really growing on me, which is something I’d never expected a year ago. This isn’t super trippy, but it does that the odd essences of it in some songs. Elsewhere, the music can sound bardic or folk rock, and it’s just an all round nice album. It’s somewhat short, but it doesn’t feel too short. I think they got the timing of this just right. Overall, an easy recommend.
Blije Americana met een psychedelisch randje. Nog nooit van deze gasten gehoord, ze zullen ongetwijfeld dikke vriendjes met Bob Dylan zijn geweest. Best leuk allemaal.
The Painter of Women and Magic Hollow are standout songs, with The Keeper of Time close behind. Otherwise, a sound very much like you'd expect from the band. Enjoyable overall.
Well this is a fun little one, isn't it? Under half an hour of good ol' 60's psych pop. I'm sort of surprised I've never heard of this band, as this falls right into my wheelhouse. I really liked this listen.
There are some great tracks here but the lyrics of some hold it back from being a 5.
The baroque touches accentuate great tunes, the Randy Newman cover at the end sounds like Dylan at his funniest. There’s a couple of questionable ageist lines on the album but overall fantastical lyrics aesthetically fit well with the music.
Really cool 60s folk, psych rock record. Fascinated by bands from the 60s and 70s ive never heard of
Kannte ich nicht, find ich gut
Really good! Kind of a strange mashup of country/acid trip/Beatles/bob dylan but ultimately very enjoyable.
Never heard of this band, but the album was a pleasant surprise. Very enjoyable
This is giving me a little bit of Garfunkel & Oates vibes. I liked it. Giving a 4.
I had literally zero knowledge of this band. This is actually a really interesting psych/folk listen.
Well this is a surprise. Great tunes, interesting arrangements and at that exact sweet 66 spot when the beat explosion met psychedelia. Forced to admit this is pretty good, a shame all their catalogue goes for ridiculous prices.
bem legal o som
I'll be damned! Not only did I not dislike this album, but I even liked most of the tracks. My only criticism is that the songs are too short (~2mins on avg) and sometimes are missing a proper outro.
Never heard of them before, but that was a lot of fun.
This was a really fun folk-rock album from a group I’d never heard of. Love finding new music that fits my style!
Not bad. The voice feels genuine rather than a straight Bob Dylan rip-off but it is very close. Magic Hollow is definitely the star of the album
Honestly it was really fun, nice and short too. A great record.
Quick, snappy, enjoyable.
Love me some psychedelic folk pop. A great combo
I'm going to start with a rant real quick; why are there so many 60s folk albums on here? Like, yeah, they're good, but like, come on man. I don't need to listen to like 20 different people thus far (I'm on like 55 albums) sing over some guitar melody for 3 minutes only to have that exact same thing done for like 10 more tracks. I swear, all of these folk albums from the 60s and early 70s blend together when you listen to them in quick succession. That being said, this was fine. I thought that Triangle had a unique country flair that some other folk albums don't have. There are some times that the more folky, psychedelic pop sound reared its head in this album, but the country songs do add a unique sound that should be mentioned. I thought the Wolf of Velvet Fortune stood out the most for its slower and more rustic sound. Other than that, it's perfectly passable. I'd give it a 7/10; the country-side really bumped it up this high but it's not bad.
Nunca tinha ouvido falar e gostei muito. Uma mistura de folk, country e algo meio celta. Achei muita interessante, ouvi algumas vezes e vc nem sente o tempo passar. Algumas músicas parecem histórias sendo musicadas. Melhores músicas: Magic Hollow e The Wolf Of Velvet Fortune.
Wow. What an album. Pretty cool. Definitely an influence on the divine comedy
Easy listening classic rock, and it's good!
Good Folk Rock.
Solid
7/10. Good stuff, nothing life-changing.
Honestly, such a pleasant discovery. A little Dylanesque in the vocals, but musically touches on all the great elements of folk music of the 60s.
Did not know the band did know the album and had to get used to it, but the music, some kind of 60s folk/country rock, started to grow on me (must have played the album 5 times or so) and in the end I liked it quite well.